Day 1 Lyon

 [10 April]

Our first full day in Lyon began as so many have on this trip - just relaxing and easing into the day. 

We began the day by showering (always a good move), sipping coffee and discussing what our moves might be for the day. 

First we popped over to U Express for more groceries. Once those were dropped off we headed over to the main TI office on Place Bellecour. We had a short stroll over to rue de la Republique - a pedestrianized street full of shops and eateries - proceeding down to the Place along with hundreds of other folks going this way and that. Not chaos but damn busy!

The Place, a large space dominated by a massive statue of King Louis XIV, is presently undergoing serious updating/modification (like so much of the city itself).

The TI office was easily located -- in fact it's the only building on the Place itself. Once inside we waited in a queue to meet with an agent.  

Place Bellecour

the TI office

the Lyon City card 

Eventually our number was called and we ended up purchasing the 72-hour Lyon City Card (24-, 48- and 96-hour passes are also available). This gives us unlimited access to the public transportation system as well as a river cruise, one guided tour and entry to several dozens of museums and other tourist venues.

From the TI office we walked home, relaxed for a bit, then back to the TI office to reserve two spots on the boat cruise for Friday afternoon. 

Our next objective was to make our way to  Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse. Named for the local boy who made good, really good, in the culinary world,  this is a well-known indoor market with numerous eating venues as well. 

We strolled over to the Pont de Guillotiere where we crossed over to the left bank of the Rhone River. Passing some lovely amphitheater like seating overlooking the river, we made our way up to the Pont Wilson bridge. Here we turned east, just north of the Lyon Part-Dieu train station, our point of arrival just the previous day.

Pont Wilson in the background - our apartment is just a block to the left

left bank of the Rhone

the Basilica de Notre-Dame de Fourvière in the distance

Along the river we walked past one of the city's numerous open air food markets. If we hadn't planned to be out and about for awhile, we would have snapped up some beautiful fresh produce!

After about another 15 minutes or so we found our way into Les Halles.

The market was truly wonderful, for those of us who like to eat, and perhaps even more so for those who like to cook. Nearly all the vendors were open for business and we were faced with many temptations! 

While most vendors sold fresh meats, fish or cheeses along with a fair amount of prepared foods, savory and sweet, we saw no fresh produce. A few vendors sold wines, several dealt only in pastries and one stocked an enormous selection of spices, sauces and other pantry items, most from around the world. It was here that we stopped to pick up a packet of black curry powder, a spice combination we discovered when we grabbed a sandwich in Tours which used this ingredient. (Susan talked about black curry in her post of 6 April.)

salmon options

pistachio sausage baked in brioche

prepared foods such as . . . . .

pork in wine sauce (center)

Leaving the market we made our way across the street and waited for the C3 bus to take us back to presqu'île ("almost an island"), the peninsula separating the Saône and Rhone Rivers where our apartment is located. In fact the presqu'île is probably the busiest and some might argue coolest part of the city. 

After our bus crossed back over the Rhone we dismounted at Cordeliers and walked several blocks down to Picard, France's well known frozen food store chain. We first learned about Picard many years ago in Paris when Susan was in school at Le Cordon Bleu. We wanted to give some of their frozen savory products (fish, rice and vegetables) a try. 

From Picard it was a short 3-minute walk to our apartment where we relaxed until suppertime (we're doing a lot of relaxing!). I blanched a package of fresh haricot vert (green beans) from Morocco, and we microwaved part of a bag of Basmati rice with veggies. Not too bad! We're learning that when functioning in an unfamiliar kitchen, we like to keep it easy, both with preparation and clean up.

Tomorrow the plan includes boating on the Saône and perhaps a visit to the Basilica.

Day 3 in the Loire Valley

 [31 March]

Today was spent tidying up a few getting-to-know-the-city loose ends. After a fitful night's sleep for both of us we were greeted by a lovely morning and enjoyed coffee and a light breakfast at home.

Once we roused ourselves we headed off to the city's Tourist Office. Located across from the main train station and just a few blocks down our street, it was a short walk. We picked up some brochures of course and chatted with one of the agents who answered a couple of key questions (mainly regarding the Tours City Pass and the public transportation tickets).

the Tourist Office

From the TI office we strolled down Boulevard Heurteloup to rue Nationale where we turned north in the direction of the river. Making our way past the oh-so-many shops, large and small (including Galleries Lafayette and Monoprix Home) and following along the city's one-and-only tram line, we turned off at rue des Les Halles in search of the city's main indoor market.

we passed up this boulangerie in hopes for bread at Les Halles

And of course for the best pulled pork in the city you would go to Lazy Suzy.

A few minutes later we found our second objective for the day, Les Halles, the main indoor market. Unfortunately, most of the vendors were closed (it being Monday), but we did find a very nice woman running a large produce stand and picked up some potatoes and broccoli for dinner tonight. We also stopped at a fromagerie where we got a small wedge of Brillat Savarin and Tomme de Navarre as well as a local goat cheese, the latter being very creamy and delicious.

We also scored a loaf of pain intégrale (a healthy, hearty whole wheat loaf) a couple of croissants and two brioche feuillitée at the one open boulangerie. As we were strolling here and there it became abundantly clear to us that many shops are closed on Sundays and Mondays.

We made our way back home, dropped off our groceries, relaxed for just a few minutes before heading back out. 

First up was a stop to see the inside of the cathedral. But when we approached the place de Cathédrale, it was half full of people waiting for something, and that something was a funeral service. While everyone else was waiting we popped inside for a few minutes-- just long enough to see the wonderful tomb of the two young children of Charles VIII and Anne of Brittany before leaving. And also to realize how very cold it was inside. 

Making way back through the crowds we found a bench on the place where we could watch the process of a family saying their final goodbye to a loved one. And there were a lot of people saying their goodbyes.

From the cathedral we made our way back to rue Colbert and Carrefour express to pick up a few groceries. Grocery picking up becomes a state of mind here, at least for us, and we don't regret it for a minute.

Please note the carton of 20 eggs for about 4 bucks. And in Grand Rapids they're paying nearly $11 dollars for 24!

As we turned down our street a parade of probably 75-100 youngsters with teachers all dressed in a variety of costumes some rather outlandish but cute, passed us on the way back to the school (at the end of our street).

After leaving our groceries it was back out and over to the river for a short walk over the Saint-Symphorien (pont de fil) pedestrian bridge that crosses the Loire river to the Paul Bert Quartier.

looking downstream

our street in the middle of the block of buildings

the sign notes 863 cycles across the bridge today and over 101,000 this year

It was then home and a home cooked meal for us!

Tomorrow: exploring farther afield in Tours using a day pass on the public transit. That's the plan and right now we're sticking with it.